Page 107 of The Proposal
He smirks. “My mistake. Ifyou and Mrs. Brewerwould take part, we could launch a promo with the two of you leading into the series. The optics would be great. She’s very marketable, and everyone loves a rags-to-riches story. Additionally, we could shut down a lot of this chatter and twist the narrative to fit our needs.”
I think my eyes might bulge out of my head.He has to be kidding.
“Nothing major,” he says, sitting again. “Just something to show—”
“No.”
He lifts a brow.
“This is absolutely not happening.”
“I’d like you to reconsider.”
I run my palms down my pants. “I really don’t give a fuck.”
My brain imagines what Blakely would say if I even suggested such a thing—not that I would ever bring it up. There’s no way I’m exploiting what we have for anything, least of all the Royals.
The last thing she wants is her name in print. The whole reason she married me was to stop that from happening. And now Galecki wants tointentionallyput her name into the world? To put her up for discussion—us up for evaluation?
No way.
“I’m not saying I know a thing about marketing,” I say. “But if your issue with my marriage is people talking, why would you want to give them something to talk about? Why draw attention to it? Doesn’t make much sense to me.”
“This is bad for business the way it stands. It can be good for business with some … slight modifications.”
“Not my problem.”
“Oh,but it is your problem. Your contract says it’s your problem.”
My blood boils. “My contract says that I won’t cause you problems. It doesn’t say I have to jump through whatever hoop you put before me to make you a little extra cash.”
“Let me be blunt.We own you.”
“No one owns me.”
He licks his lips. “You’ll do it, or we’ll sue you for breach of contract.”
My teeth grind together as I stare at Galecki and his self-satisfied grin.Fuck you.
“Do it,” I say. “Sue me for refusing to have my wife exploited. That’s going to look real good in the papers.”
His laugh is haughty. “This is where we are.Either you sign on to this marketing campaign, or we sign legal proceedings. And before you run your mouth without doing your due diligence—go home. Think about it. There’s not another team on any continent capable of winning the championship that would be willing to take you on after this.”
“You say that like you think I give a fuck.”
“Oh, I think you do.”
“You’re wrong. Youdo nothave the right to talk about my wife.” I stand. “I’m leaving because, if I don’t, I’m going to remind you of who you are when you’re not behind that desk.”
He flinches. “Are you threatening me?”
I wink at him and head to the door before making a mess of this situation.
“We’ll need an answer in the next few days.”
“Fuck you, Galecki.”
The door slams behind me.
